


A Glass Slipper (RQ). Fairytale!AU.

by AmaranthPrincess21



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/M, fairytale!au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-14
Updated: 2014-07-14
Packaged: 2018-02-08 19:51:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1954062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmaranthPrincess21/pseuds/AmaranthPrincess21
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Living with your two nice step-sisters but awful step-mother, you are being treated like a servant in your own home. When a royal messenger comes to your home with an invitation to a ball, you know you have to attend the ball no matter what.<br/>Based off of the fairytale <i> Cinderella </i></p>
            </blockquote>





	A Glass Slipper (RQ). Fairytale!AU.

**Author's Note:**

> This piece was a request from my homebae Cato who asked for a retelling of Cinderella.

Once upon a time, you lived in a wonderful, loving household with your mother and father. Even though you were the daughter of a mere blacksmith and a midwife, you always got what you needed. But one day, when you were very young, your mother got sick and passed away. Your father, Rod Reiss, knew you needed a mother figure and married a woman that, now that you were old enough to know of such things, had a questionable reputation. She had two daughters of her own: your half-sister Historia and her half-sister Annie.

Your father was never home anymore, what with being heavily involved in the government and the Wallist Cult and trying to raise his rank. At first, you volunteered to help your new step-mother clean around the house because she was clearly lost on how to do such things. But over time, your step-mother took advantage of your desire to help, and treated you like a servant in your own home. 

Ten years passed after your father remarried, and nothing changed in that time period. Currently, you were kneeling on the wooden floor of the tiny foyer, polishing it till it shined brighter than any jewel in the land. _I can’t believe this floor manages to get so disgusting. We always wipe our feet before entering the house, so where’s all this dirt coming from?_ you grumbled as you heard a knock on the front door. Wiping your hands on your apron, you quickly scurried to the door an opened. 

“Hello miss,” the man said. His elaborate get-up ousted him as a castle messenger. “I have some very important news that I wish to rely to the ladies of the home.” 

“Please, come in, sir,” you said politely, hearing your step-mother and sisters emerge from their rooms. The walls of your home were paper thin, and visitors at the door could always be heard at any location in the house. Your step-mother seemed more excited about the royal messenger than her daughters; she practically flew out of her room while Annie and Historia took their sweet time. 

“Prince Levi has come of age, and his father, King Erwin, wishes to marry him off as soon as possible. Tomorrow night, there will be a ball held in the castle and every eligible young lady in the land is invited to attend. The ball will start at eight-thirty and end at one thirty am. We hope to see you there.” The messenger bowed graciously to you all, and saw himself out. Once the door had shut, your step-mother went into a flurry. 

“Oh my God, we need to get you girls gowns! I think I have some ball gowns left over from my escort days! Come on, let’s go raid my closet!” She grabbed Annie and Historia’s arms, hauling them to her bedroom. You started to follow them, but your step-mother gave you a deadly glare. “You’re not going.” 

“What?! Why?!” you demanded, staring at the woman with wide eyes. 

“Mother, I think [First] should come with, after all, she _is_ invited,” Historia pointed out. She visibly withered under her mother’s harsh gaze. 

“Historia’s got a point. [First]’s invited, so she should go. And besides, isn’t the only reason you want us to go to the ball is in hopes that we’ll get married off and out of the house sooner?” Annie challenged her mother, meeting the older woman’s deadly glare with her own. 

“Fine. Even though I need her to stay here to clean the house, [First] can go if she finishes cleaning the entire house and mends one of my old gowns by tomorrow evening,” your step-mother told you. Excitement bubbled in your stomach, and you had to fight back squeals of excitement. _I get to go to a ball! A real ball! And I get to meet the prince! Oh my God, I get to meet the prince! As a suitor!_ For the rest of the day, you had a goofy, beaming smile on your face. 

Meanwhile in the castle, preparations were underfoot for the ball the next evening. Instead of devoting his time to princely duties, Prince Levi was on his hands and knees, furiously scrubbing the marble floor of the ballroom until it shined brighter than any jewel in the land. The prince loved things to be extra clean, and was able to detect even the smallest trace of dirt. Everyone called him a clean-freak, but he called himself “normal for wanting to live in a clean home.” Loud footsteps against the recently polished marble reached his ears, and he looked up to see his father, King Erwin, and Erwin’s adviser Grand Duke Mike. 

“Levi, you should be at your dance lesson right now. The ball is tomorrow and you won’t sweep a lady off her feet unless you -” 

“Fuck dance lessons. This floor is disgusting and I need to clean it.” Levi replied, continuing to scrub the floor. 

“The servants can take care of that, sir,” Mike pointed out. 

“The servants can’t clean for shit. I’m the only one that can do this,” Levi insisted, scrubbing the floor even harder. He was irritated beyond belief. He didn’t want to attend the ball or get engaged in the first place. He thought it was ridiculous that he should be getting married at the young age of twenty-one, but because his father was going on a diplomatic mission around the world, he was giving the crown to Levi, who didn’t have the _best_ approval rating in the kingdom. Everyone knew him as a sour and cynical prince, and unless he did something to show his subjects he had a heart, something that could be proven by getting married, it would be hard for him to lead the kingdom. 

“Levi. Leave it,” Erwin commanded sternly, using his foot to lift Levi’s arm off the ground. “Go to your dance lesson, and then go over those plans I wrote up for you.” Levi glared at his father, but obeyed, putting the sponge back in the bucket and storming off to the smaller ballroom for his dance lesson. He knew it was in vain to fight his father on this. But he would do his best to scare off the girls who wished to marry him. While he did dislike his approval among the commoners, he knew there were different ways to win them over, and all of those ways didn’t involve the wife. 

_I’ll attend this stupid dance lesson, and I’ll go over those stupid plans he’s leaving for me,_ Levi thought as he entered the smaller ballroom and began his dance lesson. _But I’ll make sure no woman will want to marry me._

The evening of the ball came very quickly, and you were excited. You had cleaned the house until it sparkled and shined, and you had mended and transformed one of your step-mother’s dresses into a beautiful ball gown. You and your sisters sat at the kitchen table, awaiting your step-mother to emerge from her room and for the carriage that would take you to the castle. Historia and Annie weren’t as ecstatic as you were about the ball. Annie wanted to stay home and read, and Historia claimed the only reason she was going was for the desserts that were sure to be present. They, however, knowing just how horribly your step-mother treated you, supported your enthusiasm about the ball and promised they would help the prince fall in love with you, if you needed the help. It seemed to take an eternity, but finally your step-mother came out of her room wearing a nice, although gaudy, gown. 

“The house looks nice, [First],” she said as if she didn’t really mean it. Her face was visibly contemptuous. 

“Thank you,” you replied, just to appear gracious. Picking a fight with her was not a good idea right now. You step-mother walked over the table, picking up Historia’s cup of tea. As if it were the most normal thing in the world, she dumped its contents onto your dress. You screeched as the hot liquid seeped into the dress and your legs. You pulled the soaked fabric away from your legs to prevent them from being burnt, glaring at your step-mother. “What was that for?!” 

“Oh. How clumsy of me. Looks like you’re not going,” your step-mother said apathetically as tears blurred your vision. 

“[First] can wear my gown, I’ll just stay home,” Annie offered. 

“No, Annie, you’re going to the ball. It’s just as well she’s staying home. Servants shouldn’t go to these kinds of events, anyway.” she shrugged, gripping her daughters’ arms and hauling them to their feet. “Come now, the carriage should get here any moment. [First], while we’re gone, clean up this mess.” And without another word, she whisked your sisters away to the ball you had been so looking forward to. Alone in your house, you began to quietly weep. 

_I’ve been so thrilled for this ball, and now I can’t even go!_ you thought as you put your head in you hands. _The one chance I had at leaving this home and getting a chance at a new start, and it’s gone! It’s all gone and I’m gong to be stuck in this home forever!_

“You look a little down there, [First]? Need some help?” a voice asked you. You looked up to see a brunette woman with glasses sitting in the seat across from you. 

“W-who are you? And what’re you doing in my house?” you asked her, discreetly looking around the room in case you needed a weapon to fight her off. 

“I’m your fairy godmother, of course!” she explained cheerfully. “Now, stand up. I need to fix your dress. I’m not letting you go to a ball in a tea-stained dress.” 

“How can you help me? Do you have an extra gown for me to wear? And a way to get to the ball?” you sniffled, standing up. Although you were calling bullshit, you were going to trust her. For now. The woman pulled a wand out of her pocket and approached you. 

“Well, sorta. Just stand still; I’m going to transform your dress.” And with a wave of her magic wand, your dress transformed from a dingy, okay gown into a fancy, clean, and sophisticated ball gown. “I-It’s beautiful,” you whispered, looking at the gown in awe. _So, fairies are the real deal? Go figure._

“It’s nothing. Now let’s go outside and see what sort of things I’m working with,” she said, not waiting for you as she made her way into your garden. You hurried after her, feeling the damp grass under your bare feet and being mindful of glass shards in the yard. They were the result of your step-mother broke a window while in a rage. 

“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name?” you asked the woman as she grabbed a pumpkin and dragged it to an empty space in the garden. 

“My name’s Hange. Let’s see . . . ah! Just what I needed!” she exclaimed suddenly, picking up two mice out of the tomato patch and taking to the pumpkin. “Stay there, little guys,” she told them. With another wave of her wand, the pumpkin transformed into a beautiful carriage and the mice became two majestic horses. 

“Gosh, this is so wonderful. Thank you so much, Hange!” you told her, heart warming at her helping you to the ball. 

“It’s nothing, [First]! But listen. The magic will only last for a few hours. At midnight, the charms will wear off and the carriage will turn back into a pumpkin, your dress will revert back to its old state, et cetera. You understand? Be back home before midnight so none of that happens and you have to walk home.” 

“I got it,” you nodded. “Let me run inside and grab my shoes, and then I can be on -” 

“You don’t have shoes on? Hold on, I’ll get you a nice pair, let me just find something,” she said, searching the garden. A glimmering caught her eye, and she walked over the small pile of broken glass. “This isn’t ideal, but it’s the best I can do,” she said, waving her wand. The pile of glass transformed into two shining slippers made of glass. “You can put them on in the carriage. Good luck, [First]! I have my full faith that you’ll woo the prince!” she said. You grabbed the shoes and hurried into the carriage with not a second to lose. 

At the ball, Prince Levi was just about done with everyone and everything. Despite his cold demeanor that he was purposefully making worse tonight, girls flocked to him and begged him for a dance. His plan was royally backfiring in terms of repelling girls. _At least the plan will still work if I refuse to pick one of these girls,_ he mused as he picked up a glass of champagne from a server and went to find a secluded area to relax. 

And that’s when he saw you from across the ballroom, chatting with two blondes. 

You were certainly an attractive girl, but what made Levi look twice was that you were clean. _Really_ clean. Most of the people that had showed up followed the trend of hardly bathing, which although doctors said was healthy, Levi didn’t buy it. _Hm. One that actual has a head on her shoulders. Good for her,_ he thought. He certainly didn’t expect to eventually run into you, as he searched for a quiet place and you looked around to look for a dance partner. You found him, and, deciding to take a chance, approached him. 

“Hi, um, I was wondering if you’d like to dance?” you asked meekly. He didn’t know why, but he decided to give you a chance. He put down his glass and led you to the dance floor. He wasn’t the most elegant dancer, but it didn’t bother you at all. 

“So, what do you think of the ball so far?” you asked him in an attempt to make polite conversation. 

“I’m bored to death and I hope one-thirty comes quickly,” he replied. He chanced to look down, and scowled at the microscopic amounts of dirt on the floor. “Tch. The floor is disgusting,” he commented. You looked down, and adopted the same look of disgust as he had. 

“Ugh. At least it’s something a little washing with some good soap can fix. Maybe a waxing after it, too, just to be safe. Oh dear, that’s not good,” you added, seeing scuff marks in the floor. “I guess it’s okay since that’s easily fixable as well. Although hard. We have a marble cutting board at home, and getting marks out of it is terrible. You have to scrub up and down, not in a circular motion, and it’s a real pain. Circular motions are so much easier, but it ruins the marble so you can’t do that.” 

“Cleaning this floor is a bitch. I’m the only one who ever knows how to clean it properly. Hell, I’m the only one who knows how to clean in this place,” he confided in you, his interest piqued a little at your knowledge of cleaning. 

“I understand. My sisters say I clean too much, but I enjoy it and to me, nothing is ever clean enough unless I spend hours and hours on it.” Something lit up in Prince Levi. _A girl who likes cleaning? A girl who cleaned for_ hours _and strived for perfection?_ He was interested. 

Much to the chagrin of the other attendees, you spent the rest of the night either dancing with Levi or sitting with him, the two of you bonding over your love of cleaning, and eventually the pressures put on you by your parents. Slowly, but surely, you felt yourself falling in love with him, and he with you. But as time ticked on, you lost track of time and were alarmed when you saw that the clock read eleven-fifty. 

“Oh, no! Levi, I-I am _so_ sorry, but I have to go! I have to be home by midnight!” you said, panicking, worried you wouldn’t make it home in time. “I-I’ll come back sometime, I just have to go!” You stood up quickly and started hurrying for the door. You stumbled in your haste, feeling your shoe fall off, but you didn’t let it stop you. You ran out of the ballroom in one shoe, hearing Levi yell something after you, but you couldn’t hear what he said. Within seconds, you were out of the castle and back in your carriage on your way home. 

Levi stood in the ballroom, looking towards the door as if he couldn’t believe what just happened. _What happened? Is she okay?_ he wondered, stooping to pick up your slipper. 

“There you are, Levi. I saw you were talking to that girl for quite a bit of time,” Erwin commented, approaching his son. “What’s that in your hands?” 

“It’s her shoe. I never even got her name,” he added, staring at the shoe curiously. “Glass? That sounds like a pain in the ass to walk around in.” 

“How about we use the shoe to find her?” Erwin suggested. “Tomorrow, I’ll send Mike to go door to door and find her. If the shoe fits her and she’s able to give us the second shoe, we will bring her back to the castle.” 

“Fair enough. Let’s do it.” Levi shrugged, trying to appear passively. In actuality, he was very excited at the prospects of seeing you again. 

True to his word, King Erwin sent Grand Duke Mike out while Erwin and Levi had to talk through political issues to search the kingdom for you. It was the biggest surprise to you when Mike knocked on your door, your other shoe in his hand. 

“Hello, miss. I’ve been sent here by Prince Levi. The woman he wishes to court left this shoe at the ball last night, and we’re in search of her.” You could hear your step-mother and sisters emerging from their rooms. 

“Please, come in. Annie! Try the shoe on for the nice man!” you step-mother barked at your sibling while pushing you out of the way to let the Grand Duke in. Annie sighed at her mother’s request and obliged. It was too small for her. Your step-mother didn’t look pleased about it, and ordered Historia to try it on. But alas, it was too big for Historia, and that made her very disgruntled. You made to try it on, and it fit like a glove. That sent your step-mother over the edge. 

“She’s just a servant girl, and she wasn’t even at the ball last night!” your step-mother tried to discredit you. 

“Yeah she was. When you were off with that fat asshole, we saw [First] and hung out with her for a bit,” Annie defended you, making her mother’s face turn bright red from embarrassment and rage. 

“Even if the shoe fits her, any girl could fit in that shoe! How do you know she’s the one the prince is looking for?! Do you know her name, or what she looks like?” your step-mother demanded of him. 

“Admittedly, I don’t know her name or what she looks like,” Mike said. 

“I have the other slipper, if that helps,” you pointed out, quickly fetching the matching shoe from your bedroom. Your step-mother was in a rage, and did all she could to keep you at home, saying you were a servant and needed to stay and clean the house. 

“Sir?” you whispered in the Grand Duke’s ear as you were about to leave. 

“You’re not going to stay here, are you?” he asked incredulously. 

“Oh, God no. I know it’s a big favor to ask, but can I bring my sisters with us? I don’t want them in this situation. With me gone, she’s bound to focusing her rage on them,” you pleaded with him. 

“I’m sure King Erwin and Prince Levi will welcome them into the court. Miss Historia, Miss Annie, pack your bags. You’re coming with us.” Your step-mother was absolutely livid at this declaration, and ran into her room to grab something. You were terrified she was going to grab a weapon, but as the minutes went by, she remained in her room. You were curious as what had happened, but you weren’t going to challenge it. As the Grand Duke, Annie, and Historia left the doorway with bags in hand, you glanced into the house one last time. Out of your mother’s door, you saw Hange peek her head through, mouthing, “I got her tied up so she can’t hurt you. Get away while you still can,” while making a thumbs up at you. You grinned back at her and nodded, waving goodbye and thanks. 

It was a dream come true, as you left with Mike and your sisters for the castle. You were leaving behind a horrible household, and you were going to start a new life. Once you arrived at the castle, you quickly settled in and spent the rest of the day with Levi, who was thrilled at you joining him in his castle. Life at court was blissful, and after a healthy courting period, Levi proposed and you happily accepted. 

The wedding was beautiful, serene, loving ceremony and you were crying tears of joy through the whole thing. Your father had long ago left your step-mother, and he was there walking you down the aisle. You got to have your sisters right by your side during the wedding as your two maids of honor, a role they had been excited to fill since childhood. And, of course, you were being married to the love of your life and, eventually, start a loving family with him. For everyone who deserved it, they got a happy ending. 

And what about your step-mother? 

She had tried to attend your wedding with intentions to spite you. But then something happened (something you suspected had to have magic involved). Birds swarmed your step-mother before she even made it to the ceremony, and her eyes had been pecked out by them, forcing her to live without eyesight for the rest of her life. 

With a new chapter starting in your life as Levi’s wife, princess and eventual queen of the land, you couldn’t help but feel like everything had fallen into place beautifully. You were finally living the life you deserved. 

And they all lived happily ever after.


End file.
